100 Australian Women of Influence 2012

Jan Owen, Chief Executive Officer of the Foundation for Young Australians has topped the list of 100 Women of Influence for 2012.

Nine additional women from the 100 Women of Influence list have been honoured for their contribution to the economic and social future of Australia at the 2012 Women of Influence Awards sponsored by Westpac and the Financial Review.

To be considered for inclusion in the list of 100 Women of Influence, women in the corporate, community, arts, philanthropy, and public and not-for-profit sectors had to nominated. In 2012 over 300 nominations were received from the general public, which represents just a fraction of the huge number of talented and hard-working women we have in this country, and I am certain there are many more outstanding and influential women from across the country, whose achievements were not brought to the attention of the judges.

From the list of 300 nominations, the search for Australia’s most influential woman was narrowed to 12 finalists in each of the 10 award categories: Board/Management; Diversity; Emerging; Global; Local/Regional; Innovation; Philanthropy; Public Policy; Social Change/Enterprise; and Young Leader.

Jan Owen was announced the overall winner and category winner for social enterprise for her outstanding work in youth affairs. The Chief Executive Officer of the Foundation for Young Australians, impressed the panel of judges with “the breadth of her work and her commitment to energising Australia’s youth.”

Westpac Chief Executive Officer, Gail Kelly says the awards are a wonderful opportunity to acknowledge the significant contribution that women make in building a more sustainable economic and social future for Australia. “The inaugural 2012 Women of Influence Awards have uncovered extraordinary women across Australia who are great leaders, entrepreneurs, mentors and role models.”

2012 Women of Influence Awards Category Winners

Board/Management: Sam Mostyn
Public Policy: Dr Michele Bruniges & Carmel McGregor (Joint Winners)
Diversity: Nareen Young
Business Entrepreneur: Christine Cameron
Young Leader: Yassmin Abdel-Magied & Marita Cheng (Joint Winners)
Global: Serafina Maiorano
Local/Regional: Fiona Shewring
Innovation: Megan Clark
Philanthropy: Jeanne Pratt
Social Enterprise & Overall Winner: Jan Owen

Congratulations to all the category winners and to every woman who earned a place in this year’s 100 Women of Influence.

Brett Clegg from the Financial Review Group had this to say about the awards: “The Awards are about identifying and celebrating bold, energetic women, capturing the spirit of change and helping Australia shape a vibrant, inclusive future. The calibre of finalists is indicative of the enthusiasm and desire that is widely held, to recognise the women shaping our society.”

The complete list of 100 Women of Influence 2012 is available at the Australian Financial Review website